“Justice for All? Economic Disadvantage and Trust in Poland’s Judicial System”- A Study in Warsaw

Over the summer, I had the opportunity to take courses in Statistics in Sociology, Social Change in Central and Eastern Europe, and conduct independent undergraduate research- all while in Poland! With the guidance of faculty from the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology at the Polish Academy of Sciences, I was able to understand the statistics and variables behind POLPAN data, which I utilized to test my research hypotheses in a paper titled “Justice for All? Economic Disadvantage and Trust in Poland’s Judicial System”.

Prior to the completion of my research, and with the upcoming presidential election in the States, I had found myself thinking a lot on the topic of trust. What does it mean to a candidate? What does it mean to us, the people whose trust these candidates must depend on? Well, the answer to that question is just this: trust means everything. Before going over to Poland, and studying the POLPAN data set, I had my own perception of how a candidate could gain my trust, but I began to wonder what factors influence others’ trust. And, since I was soon off to Poland and had access to such a colossal data set, I wondered what factors influence the Polish people’s trust in their government.

After running all the tests and contemplating the statistics and results to measure my hypotheses, I learned that the characteristics of the Polish people that affect trust (specifically in the judicial system) the most are not what I expected. I believed that years of education and sex would prove to be the most significant factors, however, this was not the case. In this instance, there exists a moderately strong relationship between AGE and trust, in that as age increases, trust decreases. This was very surprising to me- it brought me to the realization that candidates may benefit from careful consideration of what age group they should/are appeal/ing to (note that this data is representative in the context of Poland, similar tests must be run in the US to determine if the results are the similar in different contexts-history may yet prove to be the defining factor of trust).

Going into this data set, there was so much I didn’t know about the world, so much I didn’t know about all the events that Poland had been through that could cause trust in institutions to be as low as I found it to be. Coming from the US, where the only things I had ever truly had to worry about, in terms of the state of affairs, was when inequality would die out, or what crimes had occurred in the country on a given day. But when you step off the plane in Warsaw and walk the streets, you can see that this country went through so much, and its people are so strong because of it.

In Warsaw, almost every single building you see is a historical reconstruction of the building that once stood in its place; at the Royal Palace in Old Town (also rebuilt), you can see the paintings that they based these reconstructions on. Consider this: 90% of the city was destroyed during WWII. I can’t even begin to imagine what is left standing, but the people rebuilt it all, from the rubble up. The government was also left in the rubble, and the Communist party took control and brought with it corruption and long lines and left the people insecure in their belongings. And when Communism fell, the people didn’t know who they could trust, to this day, they still don’t. I cannot even imagine having lived through all of these changes; I now have nothing but respect for the Polish people, especially the elderly who lived through the bombs and the lies and the uncertainty in everyday life. It was incredible to see the respect that people of all ages have for the elderly; the Polish people appear to treat those over the age of 65 like royalty (helping across streets, giving up seats on public transportation, letting cut in line for ice cream…).

Because it is my dream to become an attorney (I actually took the LSAT yesterday morning!), after seeing the way that the average Joe in Poland protects the vulnerable, I am now more motivated than ever. I want to be in a position where I can protect the people from victimization, or at least fight for the penalization of those who chose to harm the vulnerable. I wish that the people here had nearly as much respect for one another as I saw in Poland. But, because this is not the case, I know that the best thing for me to do is defend those who need help, by fighting for retribution and the rehabilitation of criminals in the courtroom. Perhaps one day we may experience the crime lows that Poland does (despite the US being significantly larger and more densely populated), I only hope that I am around if it happens; walking the streets of Poland, I can say with confidence that I had never felt safer or received more smiles in a day (a welcome difference from the States).

Palace on the Water

Palace on the Water

Rose Wall behind the Warsaw Uprising Museum

Rose Wall behind the Warsaw Uprising Museum

One thought on ““Justice for All? Economic Disadvantage and Trust in Poland’s Judicial System”- A Study in Warsaw

  1. Hi Lauren,

    It’s awesome to hear that this experience reinforced your commitment to justice. I’m glad to hear you want to support those who need it the most! It is clear you understand the structural inequities in our criminal justice system.

    Thank you, in advance, for helping those who aren’t heard.

    Take care,
    Kara

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